Initiative has enabled more than 200 community partnerships, $26 million in community investments globally, and supported people in over 358,000 critical moments in time

TORONTO, Aug. 10, 2022 /CNW/ - Scotiabank today released its inaugural ScotiaRISE Impact Report, providing highlights from the first year of the Bank's 10-year, $500-million community investment commitment to strengthen economic resilience among disadvantaged groups.

Guided by its purpose, for every future, Scotiabank launched ScotiaRISE in January 2021 with a mission to strengthen economic resilience among disadvantaged groups across the communities where it operates. Through the initiative, Scotiabank partners with organizations to support disadvantaged people in becoming more economically resilient by helping them overcome barriers and fully participate in the economy.

"Scotiabank recognizes the vital role that economic resilience plays in society, and the importance of removing the barriers that prevent many in our communities from fully participating in the economy," says Meigan Terry, Senior Vice President and Chief Sustainability, Social Impact, and Communications Officer at Scotiabank. "Resilient economies provide the foundation for everyone's advancement – from customers to communities to our own business."

ScotiaRISE invests in partnerships and programs within three priority focus areas — increasing high school graduation and post-secondary participation; helping newcomers settle in new countries and feel at home faster; and assisting those facing barriers to employment with career development or career progression.  Investments fostering allyship, inclusive practices, financial literacy, skills development and mentoring opportunities are instrumental to achieving impact across these three pillars.

Through $26 million in community investments deployed across 200 partners, ScotiaRISE has accomplished the following key milestones, which are highlighted in the report:

• Provided support to people during 358,000 critical moments in time* across ScotiaRISE's key focus areas, including education, employment and newcomer support
• In addition, the community investments made through ScotiaRISE improved high school graduation and post-secondary participation for vulnerable youth and helped more than 22,000 individuals through allyship, cross-cultural training and anti-bias or inclusion programming
• Removed barriers to career advancement for disadvantaged groups, helping more than 73,000 individuals gain an employment foothold to progress in their careers
• Helped newcomers realize opportunities to participate in the economy and feel at home faster, supporting more than 50,000 individuals by providing coaching, mentoring and financial education and support
• Supported programs outside of ScotiaRISE's three focus areas with access to basic needs including helping more than 103,600 individuals access food and water, 2,700 individuals access health and medical care and 480 individuals access shelter

One year in and ScotiaRISE is already having a big impact. Perspectives looks behind the numbers to see how Scotiabank realigned its commitment to support economic resilience in disadvantaged communities and drove impact through its partnerships.

Click here for more information on ScotiaRISE and Scotiabank's commitment to diversity and inclusion.

*Critical moments in time are instances where an individual or group received support training, and/or resources through a program enabled by a ScotiaRISE investment

Scotiabank is a leading bank in the Americas. Guided by our purpose: "for every future", we help our customers, their families and their communities achieve success through a broad range of advice, products and services, including personal and commercial banking, wealth management and private banking, corporate and investment banking, and capital markets. With a team of over 90,000 employees and assets of approximately $1.3 trillion (as at April 30, 2022), Scotiabank trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: BNS) and New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: BNS). For more information, please visit http://www.scotiabank.com and follow us on Twitter @ScotiabankViews.

SOURCE Scotiabank